Over the past few years, some very unusual websites in terms of design have appeared across the internet. They look simple, are (mostly) functional, informative — yet they lack many of the visual nuances users are used to. These sites feature almost no images and very few designer “tricks.” Imagine an object in real life that gets polished and cleaned, but not decorated or painted. It looks plain at first glance — yet it works efficiently and serves its purpose. That’s exactly how some websites feel in terms of their web design.

We’re talking about a design trend called brutality or brutalism. We’ve already explored how art movements influence website design, but the topic of brutalism is especially rich and, we believe, increasingly relevant as it gains popularity. Many well-known companies and public figures now have websites designed in the brutalist web style.

What is Brutalism

At the start of the 19th century, modernism began to develop in the arts. But by the mid-20th century, during the era of neo-modernism, the term “brutalism” appeared — originally referring to “raw concrete” or “béton brut.” It was during the postwar period that Le Corbusier introduced a new method for shaping concrete in architectural construction. Around the same time, Peter and Alison Smithson coined the term to define a new architectural style. Brutalism became a branch of European modernism and eventually spread to the US, Canada, the USSR, and throughout Europe.

Buildings created in this style include RIA Novosti HQ, Boston City Hall, the Bangladesh Parliament building, and the Salute Hotel.

These are strikingly unusual buildings — but functional and not without charm or aesthetic value. Beyond architecture, brutalism has influenced interior design, graphic design, sculpture, and fashion. In the past, this style was simply part of its time. But today, anything created in a similar aesthetic grabs attention instantly. Among modern creators, Rick Owens stands out — he designs clothing and furniture in this style and is one of the best-known fashion designers today.

Accordingly, web design in the brutalist style must also stay true to the values and spirit of its “ancestor.”

Brutalist Web Design Features

It was only in 2014 that this web design trend got a proper name — “web brutalism” — coined by Pascal Deville (CEO of Freundliche Grüsse). He explained the name choice by saying that modern websites lack strictness, honesty, solidity, and seriousness. In his view, today’s web design is just too cheerful.

Identifying whether a site follows the brutalist style is generally easy. It’s extremely simple and functional. It’s not complicated to design — though many web designers wrongly associate it with monospaced typography, black backgrounds, and extra colors like red, white, yellow, or green. In truth, colors and typefaces can vary.

The point is, the web brutalism style embodies simplicity and function. Even in code — minimal scripts, straightforward logic. That’s why many personal websites that look absurdly basic are often seen as examples of this style. Although in reality, the creators might have simply chosen the brutalist aesthetic and combined it with elements of other styles. Yes, that happens too — brutalism as just one layer of an overall design system.

How to Recognize Brutalist Web Design

There are certain standards that define web brutalism and help determine whether a design fits the style. We’ve included examples below to avoid making this a confusing mess right now.

Some people claim a truly brutalist site shouldn’t include images or photos. That’s a myth! Images don’t change the style — they’re never “unnecessary.” On the contrary, they can enhance the concept when used deliberately.

Surprisingly, we all see brutalist sites almost every day. Many of them have been online for decades and remain extremely popular. They were built to be simple, fast-loading, and functional.

PICTURE(S)

In March 2017, the Berlin Museum of Photography hosted an exhibition. You can find a photo report and details at picturesnow.org. The website is a perfect example of brutalism: functional, simple, with light animation, a single typeface, and photographs.

I want you

Students at the Miami School of Design created a small poster-based project about their university. You’ll notice lots of images, no symmetry, overlapping elements, a basic font, and a snappy site performance.

The Story of Air Nike

In March 2017, Highsnobiety published a short feature on the history of Nike's Air technology. The page is striking — and fully in the brutalist style. Minimal images, large monospaced text, limited color use. There’s no navigation menu. You really have to visit it yourself to get the full impression.

d-i-y.space

A very unusual project, to be honest. The idea is to showcase independent design brands — but only via links to their Instagram pages. In terms of brutalism, the site contains absolutely nothing excessive. The homepage is pure promo, while scrolling reveals brand names and products. Overall, it sticks to the brutalist style but doesn’t look “bad.” The same goes for photographer Irina Gavrich’s site.

Maxim Moshkov’s Library

One of the most famous online libraries, founded in 1994. No images to speak of, one font used throughout. There’s a lot of text, but it’s structured and easy to understand. What more do you need? It’s all about books — practically every book ever published. The brutalist design aligns perfectly with the core mission: to provide access to literature.

Art. Lebedev Studio

This company has launched so many websites since 1995 that you can find almost any style or direction among their projects. We won’t analyze each one here — just note that their main site is both simple and sophisticated.

Reddit

Another well-known international news-sharing and discussion platform. People talk about games, films, books, current events. They discover memes, images, and opinions here.

Let’s also mention Pinterest and Bloomberg.

Web Brutalism: Pros and Cons

Some argue that brutalist web design is essentially a collection of unfinished websites. Sites with no design, no appeal, created for no clear reason. Others believe the opposite — that brutalism has a positive effect on conversion rates and user experience. Pages load fast, contain no fluff, and present information clearly and directly.

But there’s one “but”. In many ways, brutalism is an author-driven style in web design. It’s just as demanding to execute as a project in grunge or retro style. If a designer decides to build a portfolio site in brutalist style, it needs to be made clearer and more accessible to a wider audience.

What’s the future of this style? It will keep influencing web design as a whole. It won’t replace other styles — but it will certainly offer ideas and new directions. We’ll see more experiments in typography and color pairing across interface elements.

Modest sites like Big Youth and Hum Creative are clear examples of how brutalism can be fused with refined design tricks.

These examples clearly show how brutalism intersects with modern styles — incorporating animation, shadows, and navigation techniques. Honestly, these days it’s hard to tell what exact style a site is using — they’re all blending into one another.

Conclusion

When we talk about beautiful and functional websites, it doesn’t mean stuffing a project with every possible feature in the hope that something will please the client or boost conversions. Strangely enough, a beautiful site can be built with just the essentials — in both design and development.

Don’t underestimate web brutalism. You simply need to understand its options and how to apply it within a specific project — how to blend it with creative features, and whether it’s appropriate at all.

As with all art, styles in web design constantly evolve, merge, and transform. Brutalism, minimalism, flat design — even Material Design — all borrow from each other. And users continue to enjoy websites that are both functional and visually compelling.